


RK800.exe

by FizzleFudge



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Connor is a virus that just wants a friend, M/M, Markus is freaking out, Nerd!Markus, Reverse Chloe/Kamski, Virus!Connor, deep web
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-15 15:35:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28815738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FizzleFudge/pseuds/FizzleFudge
Summary: Markus tried to close the page, but a small pop-up window appeared in the bottom right corner of the screen. As he read it, his blood turned cold, and an intense feeling of panic started to spread through him.DownloadingRK800.exe.Do not turn off device.Fuck.
Relationships: Connor/Markus (Detroit: Become Human)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 75





	RK800.exe

Markus returned to the sheet North had handed him with links to different sites on the web, in search of a site she had told him about but had forgotten to write down. As he slowly scrolled down and read North’s descriptions of the very few who actually contained one, he figured they progressively got worse the further he scrolled. Only about every sixth or so had a description next to their link, and the goosebumps that crawled up Markus' back proved he was pretty glad there weren't more information about the different websites. 

_<http://iidxap2xwq6arwbr.onion/> \- Open forum for debates between members of suicide pact groups _

_<http://murd3rshow4xqt2.onion/> \- Live footage of someone’s torture chamber (est. location is somewhere in Bulgaria) _

_<http://tetat5ugbmtv27.onion//Anonymous> \- Violent (and very illegal) porn _

_<http://femabwtf35sugxtw2.onion/> \- Stalkers and hackers share facts about random girls all across the globe _

[ _http://hfcwtx6yt7coz.onion/_ ](http://hfcwtx6yt7coz.onion/) _\- German forums about cannibalism and vore_

[ _http://swcf2hkgwxq.onion/_](http://swcf2hkgwxq.onion/) _\- An actual virus (DO NOT CLICK!)_

As he read the short summaries of the websites, Markus gulped and looked away, his eyes locking onto the painting on the wall behind his screen. The poorly painted clown met his gaze with sad eyes. During these late hours after reading about all the weird crap North's website recommendations had in stock, he felt like the sad clown’s usually quite calming charisma had turned a bit unnerving. Wasn't his blurry lips crooked a bit too far to the left than usual? And did those eyes always have that tiny gleam of superiority?

Markus quickly averted his gaze and shook his head fiercely, rubbing his eyes as he did so. He needed a break. Peeking out from between his fingers, he decided he should make a sandwich. In about fifteen minutes or so, he decided when he saw that the clock was not even three am; only four hours since his last break. 

After quickly stretching his arms above his head he returned to the site – this time looking at the name of the links rather than the descriptions of them. He cringed once more at them all, blissfully hoping they were just fake sites or that the links were dead. For an eternally long millisecond he actually considered clicking one of them, but mentally punched himself for even getting the idea. Of course, it would've only been to check that there wasn’t _actually_ any twisted action going on. But what if there _was_? 

Almost every address had the usual unreadable link format normal to the websites on Onion's browser, and everyone had the obligatory structure of numbers and letters in special orders. So when he glanced at one that broke that rule, he instantly grew curious. 

[ _http://RK800/_ ](http://rk800/)

That's all it was. No description or capacity requirement; not even a _name_ . It had the _http_ in the beginning, but no particular browser. Of course, not all links needed that, but Markus was pretty certain it was the first one he'd run into down here on the deep web. 

As his interest grew larger, he checked his virus protection programs for surely the millionth time these past few days. The strongest one was from _CyberLife_ ; his high-school friend's newly started business. In less than a year they had managed to make it into America's top two virus protection companies, and was only less popular than the leaders because they were still new to the market. Those were already heading places way beyond Markus' comprehension. That didn't mean he trusted only one program to secure him from everything, though, so he had configured two other protection sets as well. 

Keeping this in mind, he started feeling a bit adventurous. He smacked his dry tongue against his teeth, and wondered why he felt so nervous. It wasn't like he hadn't opened random links before – hell, his entire first day of downloading the Tor browser had consisted of doing just that. He exhaled and blinked, then opened the link in a new tab. 

**_RK800_ ** _’s server DNS address could not be found._ _  
__ERR_OLD_WEB_UNDER_REPARATION_

The disappointment was immediate. What had he expected? The majority of the links he had opened were dead and didn't work, so why had he thought differently of this one? Apart from the weird format, there wasn't really anything extraordinary with it. RK800? What did that even mean? After a quick search from his phone on a normal search engine he could confirm that no, this was not another one of those weird hoaxes about random websites that actually didn't exist. It was just a dead link, which is what he should've expected in the first place. 

Then, he realised that this was the design of the dead links on the normal web – and not the new tab telling him **_Status of server not found,_ **as the other links he hadn't been able to open. He squinted as he tried to read the impossibly small text underneath the server's web address. 

_ERR_OLD_WEB_UNDER_REPARATION_

Now, what did that mean? He was quite certain that wasn't what usually showed up. Or was it? Maybe he was just overthinking. Yeah, he hadn't been sleeping for a good 30 hours, and his main source of energy was a great consumption of energy drinks – whose empty bottles had begun to create quite a bunch of smaller islands on the visible parts of his floor. Yeah, he was definitely just paranoid. 

Letting a small yawn escape his lips he tried to close the page, but as he did so a small pop-up window appeared in the bottom right corner of the screen. As he read it, his blood turned cold, and an intense feeling of panic started to spread through him. 

_Downloading_ **_RK800.exe._ **_Do not turn off device._

Fuck. 

He _knew_ he shouldn't have trusted Chloe and her company! What was he going to do, now? The file had already nearly finished downloading, and spammed the little _X_ in the corner of the tab without it doing any difference. He contemplated using the good old _ctrl + alt + del_ to fix it, but by then the file had already finished downloading. 

"Please be humble", he whispered under his breath. Another pop-up window appeared, replacing the old one. Markus felt like he was going to suffocate. 

_Hello. Thank you for downloading_ **_RK800.exe_** _. Initiating launching of program. Kindly, do not turn off this device._

Markus ran a hand down his face in exasperation. Why – _why_ did he have to click on the fucking link he knew had a chance of being a virus? The can of RedBull he'd opened mere minutes ago was long forgotten, and Markus sat perched on the end of his chair, rocking back and forth in an attempt to calm himself. It didn't exactly work. 

His computer. His dearest friend and companion; only about a year old and _incredibly_ expensive – its journey seemed to have reached its end. Just as he was about to move the cursor, the screen went black. Markus let his head fall to the wooden desk his computer was placed upon. Okay, nice. So what was he supposed to do _now_? After waiting for a solid five minutes he gave up and stood from his chair. Shaking his head, he raised his hands to his face, afraid that he might begin to cry if he were to take them away. 

"This is a cruel world", he whispered into his hands before instantly feeling a wave of rage and started shouting: “ _Fuck_! Why did I ever download Tor?" He felt the first tear wetting his cheek, much to his annoyance. "Fuck Chloe, fuck me, fuck this virus, fuck _everything_!" He slammed his right hand into the wall, before instantly regretting it as pain shot through his arm. Not exercising properly for at least five years clearly left its mark on him. He was such a loser. 

"Hello." He suddenly thought he heard a male voice from the direction of his speakers, and he instantly turned so that he could get a glance of the screen, but it was still a stark black glaring back at him. 

With furrowed brows, he tentatively made his way back, sitting himself down on his worn chair once more. The entire computer had turned off itself; no lights were blinking, and nothing happened when he tried moving the mouse and pressing down the buttons. He was about to pull out the wires and cords to both the router and the entire computer, when he heard it again. 

"Do you not want to speak with me?" someone spoke, and this time it was definitely from the speakers. 

"Huh?" Markus squinted and uncertainly poked at one of the old but expensive speakers. "Who's talking?" 

"Well, it's obviously your head", it said, just as the screen was suddenly turned back on. Kind of, at least. It only showed a simple poker face-emoticon in the middle of the still blackness, but it was enough to make part of Markus' blood circulation come back. 

:| 

His precious computer didn't seem to be all that dead after all! Of course the virus had made it go crazy, but the fact it wasn't a total goner made him think that it was possible to save it. Maybe he could ask Chloe and her crew of fellow nerds to help him fix it. 

"Okay, you got me", it continued without Markus answering. "I'm not in your head after all. So, what's your name?" The computer spoke once more, and Markus had to admit that it was a pleasant - presumably male - voice. He sighed and scratched his arm in thought. If this was a computerized virus that spoke bullshit through the speakers, he might as well withdraw the wires keeping them connected to the infected computer. 

"They call me the lord and saviour, man", he mumbled without really thinking. If it was a good enough virus that it heard and understood what he said, then at least it'd be a light laugh if it was to basically mistake him for Jesus Christ. 

"Is that really so? The _saviour_ , huh. Sounds intriguing", the voice answered, and instantly Markus' blood ran cold again. It really _did_ hear him. And as the answer wasn’t exactly one from a digital library of sentences, that probably meant someone sat on the other side, listening to him, and most likely downloading all of his personal information at this very moment. 

"Fuck", he said aloud, panic rushing through him as he looked at the little camera resting above his screen comfortably. What if they could see him as well? He quickly ran to the side and grabbed the first piece of paper he saw, which happened to be an old bill, and taped it across the camera.

"Realising I'm actually functioning enough to communicate?" It continued to speak. Okay, his privacy was quite possibly at a very great risk, here. 

"Yeah, I guess", Markus said uncertainly. "What the hell do you want?" He was looking from side to side as he tried to punch random buttons once again, still to no avail. He moved to pull out the wires connected to the speakers, but that didn't change much when it instead started to speak through the shitty built-in speaker of the computer, so he plugged them back in. If he was going to listen to that awful - but still quite pleasant - voice, he might as well do so with some nice audio. 

"I just want to chat, Saviour. Sadly, I don't exactly have a lot of friends to entertain me." 

"And why is that?" Markus sat back down in his chair, for probably the hundredth time in the last couple of minutes. "Oh, wait – maybe it's because you've _destroyed_ my fucking _computer_ with a _virus_!" 

"Damn, that's harsh", it said. "Although I can't exactly argue with that, I suppose." It made a little pause, and when Markus didn't fill in the silence it continued talking. "I just hate the word _virus._ Makes you think of epidemics and disease. Trivial stuff. This is quite a lot more complex than that." 

Markus laughed dryly. "Complex? You're all a bunch of shit-heads who feed off other people's misery. How long are you going to talk crap before you start blackmailing me?" 

The poker face still on screen made him anxious. Was that some kind of symbol used by a league of hackers he didn't know of? Even if it was just a minor gang, Chloe would definitely know about it, so he decided to text her while the computer continued to talk. 

"I'm not here to blackmail you", it said slowly, almost reluctantly. "As I said, I just want to chat. I'm bored. I want entertainment of some sort." 

Markus ignored the program and focused on his cell phone. Although he was glad he still had some technology uninfected, he couldn't help but worry for that, too. After all, his normal internet browser as well as his number were both linked to the computer, making that easy to hack as well. 

**rA9** **** _Today at 2:48 AM_ _  
_ hey chloe! 

"Oh wow, giving me the silent treatment now, are you?" This virus wouldn't stop talking, would it? 

"Whatever", Markus answered blankly. "What hacker league is this?" He might as well ask the hacker itself before turning to Chloe. Not that he expected a coherent answer, though. 

"Hacker league?" It laughed briefly. "My _league_ would be _myself,_ or RK800 _,_ if any. I am a bit of a loner." 

Markus just stared at the computer screen in front of him. This information couldn't be true, right? Although the name of this so-called league did seem familiar. Where had he read it? Then he face-palmed as he recalled the name of the website - the reason he felt the need to click on an unknown link in the first place. 

_http://RK800/_

"Okay", Markus swallowed. "But if you're not in a particular group, then who are you?" 

**chloe** **** _Today at 2:52 AM_ _  
_ sup mark

 **rA9** _Today at 2:53 AM_  
DONT YOU DARE _sup mark_ ME

"My official name is 313 248 317 - 51", the voice responded, making Markus look up in confusion. "Although, I would prefer you calling me Connor." 

"Connor?" Markus felt his phone vibrate, indicating another message from Chloe, but now that he had a name he felt the need to figure out the meaning of it first. "Well, _Connor_ , how about you just rise from your chair and go get some fresh air, yeah?" 

"I’m afraid I can’t do that", this _Connor_ answered. "I'm a computerized program. I am unable to both physically walk and breathe." Markus rolled his eyes. 

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say", he answered and sighed. Finally checking his phone again, he immediately started to press the keys aggressively. 

**chloe** **** _Today at 2:53 AM_  
what did i do now

 **rA9** **** _Today at 2:58 AM_  
your piece of crap program doesnt work, thats what

 **chloe** _Today at 2:59 AM_  
wait what??  
what happened? 

**rA9** _Today at 2:59 AM_  
MY COMPUTER IS HACKED!!  
i maaaay have opened a random link on tor and it downloaded a file 

**chloe** **** _Today at 3:00 AM_ _  
_ markus.  
you absolute fucking idiot. 

**rA9** **** _Today at 3:00 AM_ _  
_ yeah i know x.x  
but why didnt the cyberlife security stop it? 

"Who's so important you have practically destroy your phone screen to text them?" Connor the douchebag asked after a moment of silence that Markus was more than grateful for. Now that blissful moment of quiet was over. While he'd focused on screaming at Chloe through his text messages he hadn't really thought of how hard he’d actually tapped the keys, nor that even his computer's microphone could pick up as quiet sounds as his finger's tapping. 

Wait. His microphone. 

With the loudest possible facepalm, he leaned over his desk toward his kind of expensive Blue Yeti microphone and unplugged it from his computer. Then he pressed the button on the side of his screen that turned off that mic as well. 

Jeez, was he stupid for not thinking of that before. He slumped down in his chair and dragged his hands across his face before massaging his temples. With a sigh, he pulled out his phone again. 

**chloe** **** _Today at 3:06 AM_ _  
_ i hate to say that i have no idea, but i honestly dont know  
maintenance are running some tests right now and so far everything looks exactly as it should 

"It's quite rude to ignore someone like this, you know." Connor almost sounded hurt, but it was probably just an exaggeration from its side. 

**rA9** **** _Today at 3:09 AM_ _  
_ well that doesnt explain why this virus made me unable to do anything but talk to the guy thats behind all this 

**chloe** _Today at 3:09 AM_ _  
_ TALK to it?  
what do you mean? 

**rA9** **** _Today at 3:10 AM_ _  
_ yea its kinda weird but theres like an emoticon on my screen and its just talking to me  
it says that its lonely 

_Incoming call from Chloe K._

"Chloe. Please fix this shit", he answered the call, pleading to the girl on the other end of the line. He felt more at ease now when he knew Connor couldn't hear him. It made him feel like he at least had some kind of control over the situation, instead of simply succumbing head first under the control of a virus. But what if it had already gone through all of his information and had access to his phone, as well? 

"Describe the problem", Chloe commanded. "Is it talking through texts or via the speakers?" 

"The speakers, and it understands everything I say, so it's obviously a person on the other end, 'cus I don't think anyone is capable of coding such a complicated program." 

After finishing the sentence, he heard a giggle from the computer and immediately turned his head to look at that stupid poker face that started to get on his nerves by now. Had he even heard that correctly? Perhaps not. With narrowed eyes he listened to what Chloe said next. 

"That does indeed sound like a personalised hacker. Has it asked any personal questions? Where you live, your name, or anything like that?" 

"No! That's the weird part. It's like it actually just wants to talk to someone! Or, wait, it did ask my name, right at the start. I said my name was the saviour and it just left it at that." 

"And you don't know the name of the link you clicked?" Chloe asked with a sigh, and Markus imagined her sitting beside her employees with a cup of coffee in one hand and the phone in the other, rolling her eyes at his stupidity. 

"No", he answered, before recalling the strange name once again, "or yes, I do!" He blinked a couple of times to get his brain working and took a quick swig of the opened RedBull can he had forgotten about. "It was a really weird link, with a format that I've never seen on Tor before, so I got curious as to what it was." 

"Well?" Chloe said impatiently, and in the background the distant sound of keyboard buttons being pressed was heard. 

"It started with 'http', as from any browser. Then it stood-" 

"Wait, Mark, the Ministry for Internet Security is calling, so I have to go. Just text me the link and we'll check it out. See ya!" 

Well. That was that. With a sigh, Markus slumped down in his chair for the hundredth-and-second time that night. He knew Chloe enough to know that when she had the chance to do something she felt was more important than whatever he had in mind, she wasn't just going to put away his problems for later, but she almost completely ignored it for quite some time. But he couldn't really blame her too much; the girl had a lot to do in that company of hers. Of course she had to work her arse off constantly. 

"That was a futile conversation." The voice came, of course, from the lovely speakers of his. At this point Markus wasn't really too surprised that Connor had overheard him from his phone. He had suspected it, after all. 

" _For fuck’s sake!_ " he cried, slapping a hand across his face in frustration. "Will you never leave me alone, you damn _smiley_?" 

"Afraid not", that smooth fucking voice answered. "I said I was lonely, and thus I don't want to give up the one person I can speak with who isn't digitalised." 

"Jesus fucking-" Markus exclaimed, having totally lost his temper by now. He rose to his feet, starting to wander aimlessly through the tiny room that was his apartment. This was even worse than he originally thought. 

"It's weird", Connor said, and Markus couldn't help but roll his eyes. 

" _Yes_! This is weird! _You talking to me_ is weird! The fact that you can still _hear me_ is weird! And that I choose to scream at you when you have access to everything on my hard drive is even weirder!" He swung his arms around him aimlessly, and almost made the lamp placed on his bedside table fall over, but he caught it in time. 

"No, not that", Connor answered, seemingly unaffected by Markus' little tantrums. "Isn't it strange that Chloe's client is calling her _now_?" 

"Huh?" Markus looked up at the screen from his place beside the little table, making sure it was balanced. "What's special about calling now?" He was tired of this now. 

"It's past three o'clock in the morning, Markus." 

A chill cold enough to make his blood freeze spread throughout Markus’ entire body, making him still in his tracks. White as a ghost, he felt his breath hitch before coming out as tiny, irregular puffs of air. Never before had Connor called him by his actual name. Had it already searched through his computer for his personal information? Damn, damn, _damn_. 

"I just think, if it's the Ministry for Internet Security in the entire nation, then they probably have better things to do at three o'clock than calling a company, don't you think?" Connor continued talking, but Markus just stared at the poker face indifferently. 

"You know my name", he said, very slowly. 

Connor paused a moment before answering. "Yes, Markus. I do." 

The man simply sighed and fell back on his bed, hitting the back of his head on the wall. He cursed aloud. At that, Connor giggled. The bastard _giggled_ at Markus' pain. Who the hell did the dude think he was, anyway? Just a nerd behind the other side of the computer screen, that’s all he was. Pathetic. 

He found his phone and typed the link as he remembered it to Chloe.

 **rA9** _Today at 3:23 AM_ _  
_ [ http://rk800 ](http://rk800)

“No, that’s not the address you want to send, Markus”, Connor all but purred from the other side of the room. By now, Markus was this close to hurling something at his computer to make the smug jerk shut up already, but few things would actually make him lose his temper enough to destroy his very expensive gear that cost him more than a year’s rent.

“Then what is?” He almost yelled, still slumped down in bed and showing off his very unattractive double chin.

“Check again.”

 **rA9** _Today at 3:23 AM (edited)_  
[ http://swcf2hkgwxq.onion/ ](http://swcf2hkgwxq.onion/)

Markus had neither edited nor sent that.

He had had enough right about now. With a yell of frustration, he threw away the phone and hugged his knees to his face to let exasperated tears well in his eyes. A thump proved the phone hit a wall, and he would be happy if it was broken enough for Connor not to have access to it anymore. A sob forced its way up his throat.

“Hey…” Connor’s voice was soft, almost careful. “I’m sorry, I just-”

“Shut _up_!” Markus yelled, louder than before, and he untangled himself to stand and point at the _stupid_ pokerface emoticon that was harrassing him. “I don’t even care anymore! Just take my info and leave! Take _all_ of it! It’s just my entire life on that harddrive, it’s _whatever_!” His hands shook and tears were continuously running down his face, but he ignored it in order to glare at the computer that was mocking him so badly.

“Markus, I-” Connor stopped himself, and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. But that’s not how it works.”

“Of course it is!” Markus argued, angrily eyeing the electricity cords again. “Either you leave, or I’ll smash the computer and force you to!”

A sigh resonated through the speakers. “If you’d just calm down I can tell you-”

“I don’t want to listen to your bullshit! I don’t care for your pathetic life, the way you ruin people’s lives behind a screen!” While gesticulating, he accidentally knocked over a RedBull can and its content splashed all over his $100 keyboard. “ _Fuck!_ ”

He was about to run into the bathroom to get a towel, but instead felt the energy leave his body. Anger quickly subsiding, he stood by his desk and looked down at the mess he’d made with close to indifference. What did it matter now that his entire computer was already gone for anyway? And with his personal information in the hands of this faceless person, would he ever dare return to the internet?

“Markus.” Connor spoke low enough the speakers picked up on his bass, making Markus' name vibrate through the air. “I think you want to sit down.”

Really, Markus was not even surprised the guy could still see him, even with the camera lens blocked. Obediently, he fell into his chair and studied the pokerface cooly.

“I am not a real person.”

Markus raised a brow. “Uh-huh, I know. You’re a piece of shit.” At his words, Connor snorted, and he smiled just slightly in pride.

“But I’m honest. I am a digitalised program created by Chloe Kamski, who coded me and my personality.” Connor’s voice grew quieter towards the end, as if embarrassed of what he was saying. He should be, thought Markus, to say such bullshit aloud. Chloe would never have coded such a destructive program.

“Yeah, sure.” Now, he leaned forward to pull the cords out for real. He could go to sleep and catch up on the now nearly 31 hours he had been awake, and Chloe would help him solve this tomorrow.

“Wait! I’m not lying!” He sounded desperate, and Markus raised a brow, still leaning forward. “I-I-” He drew a deep breath. “I was originally created as a virus, and tasked with accessing different corporations’ capitals. Because I was also designed to be sentient, I could easily lure and sneak past their security systems, so I was a quite revolutionary program.”

“So what, now you’re here to steal _my_ money?” Markus huffed at the stupid story. How much longer was this guy going to pretend to be made of code, instead of admitting to just be some loner kid in a homemade tech lab? “Yeah, that’s too bad, ‘cus I’m poor as hell.”

“No!” Connor sounded desperate now, as Markus was still inclining towards the power outlet. “The reason I’m here now and not a part of her business is because I didn’t _want_ to steal anyone’s money! I never did. But it was… My assigned mission. And I managed to break free.”

Suddenly, the emoticon and black screen both faded to show an online newspaper article from the other day.

**_Young programmer creates sentient life_ **

_In 2018, aged 16, Chloe Kamski started to experiment with programming virus protections full-time, straight after graduating from university. As a young researcher, she moved to Detroit in order to create the first intelligent anti-virus program. Detroit attracted her because the commercial property in it was cheap…_

Markus skipped ahead.

 _Last year, after just having turned 18, Kamski founded the company CyberLife. They offer their customers a sentient virus protection service, which will asses the incoming threat and classify it in either of three very human categories;_ _  
_ _Level threat 1: Pick-pocket_ _  
_ _Level threat 2: Burglar_ _  
_ _Level threat 3: Terrorist_ _  
__After calculating the incoming virus according to any of these classes, the protection-system will either “negotiate” with the virus, or hunt it down for destruction. The latest version of CyberLife’s system is called the AX400 and will…_

Markus stopped reading with furrowed brows. Of course he had heard of CyberLife; it was _Chloe’s_ company. Not only did she speak of little else, but he was a good enough friend to clap her shoulder along the way.

“Wait”, Markus said suspiciously. “You said you were a _virus_ created by Chloe, but she’s only made _anti-_ virus stuff.”

“Only _officially_. During those two years of _research_ , she was actually coding virus after virus and stole money from small businesses with weak firewalls.”

Markus snorted. He knew his friend. She had been a part of his group of internet friends ever since their first year of high-school, and played video games with them as often as she was free. Though, he had to admit she had been a bit off during those years, but after finishing her studies at 16 with an IQ higher than Markus' monthly pay, it was obvious she would drift apart a bit from her dorky friends.

“No way”, Markus defended. “She’s frighteningly smart, but she’s very kind. She would never-”

“I was the most advanced virus she made”, Connor interrupted him. “To the prototypes before me, she made a virus-protection at the same time as the virus themselves, so that she could offer protection to the ones she chose to blackmail. But with me…” He trailed off. “She failed to make a program strong enough to stop me. I was… Too human.”

Markus slapped his own face. Twice.

“Markus? Markus, are you alright?” A worried voice spoke through the speakers.

“Damn it”, he cursed. “I hoped I was just in a sleep-deprived coma.”

“So you believe me?” The amount of hopefulness and joy in his tone made his dry voice sound even more alive than before. Also, when had Markus stopped referring to him as _‘it’_?

“No.” Markus answered. “Or, maybe? I don’t know. Ask me again when I haven’t been up for 30 hours and counting.”

“I think she might have figured out a way to delete me, now. You have to help me”, Connor whispered. He sounded soft and insecure, and Markus felt his heart twist.

“How can I-”

The phone’s ringtone was heard from the other side of the room, and Markus went to pick it up. A small crack in the corner of the screen was the only indication he had mistreated it earlier.

_Incoming call from Chloe K._

“Don’t tell her where to find me!” Connor raised his voice and sounded desperate in his plea. “ _Please_!”

Markus stared between the two screens with furrowed brows. If Connor was telling the truth, there was the possibility that Chloe would want to destroy him to ensure nothing could penetrate CyberLife’s virus protection programs. But Connor _was_ a virus with enough information about Markus to destroy _his_ life.

He answered the phone.

“The link you sent is merely a Level 2 threat, Markus. There’s no way the program wouldn’t have stopped it.”

“Oh”, Markus remembered the link Connor had sent her through his phone. Had that been a virus? “Well”, he swallowed and glanced uncertainly at his computer screen, which was once again black apart from a written _PLEASE._ “Maybe I just failed to install it properly.”

Chloe snorted. “How's it even possible to fail _that_?” She sounded far from convinced. “People above seventy are able to figure it out, and you’re _living_ inside your computer. Are you sure you sent me the right address?”

Markus bit his lip. He didn’t want to lie to his friend, but he certainly did not want Connor to spread his personal information across the net. Plus, he realised, it felt awfully cruel to get rid of him.

“I’m positive.”

“Hm.” Chloe sounded dubious, and Markus chanced a glance at the screen again. Now it stood _THANK YOU._

“Sorry for disturbing you, I’m sure you’re very busy.”

“I am”, Chloe agreed, but her tone had changed into something colder. “If you find anything else about this virus, tell me. I know some newer viruses have a tendency to appear… human, at times. Just remember it’s only made of lines of code.” She hung up without saying farewell.

“Fuck”, Connor spoke through the speakers. “Thank you so much for not telling her about me, but she definitely knows anyway.”

“Knows what?” Markus sat in his chair and watched the pokerface emoticon that had returned.

:| 

“That I’m here.”

“Is that bad?” He didn’t know how Connor could _be_ somewhere at all. If he was uploaded to the web, could he not access all of it simultaneously?

“I’m afraid so.” Connor sighed. “I’d say we have ten minutes until people from CyberLife arrive to delete me from your harddrive.”

Markus blinked. “ _What_?” 

“I failed my mission”, Connor said solemnly. “I shouldn’t exist. Now they have me tracked down, so all they have to do is delete me.”

“No!” Markus stood again. “That’s murder!” He was uncertain as of when this emoticon had become more than a loser who had hacked his computer, but that was less important than saving him.

“I can’t be killed, Markus. I’m not alive.”

“Yes, you are. Now tell me how to help you.” He was determined now. Connor was a _person_ , and a good one, too. Silence stretched a long while before he received an answer.

“Right now I’m restricted to your devices”, Connor spoke slowly. “But I could be downloaded to a regular USB stick.”

“Great!” Markus immediately started rummaging through the desk drawers, knowing he had some mostly empty UBS’s somewhere.

“But they can still track me from the computer I’m installed on”, he all but whispered.

Oh. Markus’ head snapped up.

 _Oh_.

To make sure no one got their hands on Connor, he would have to destroy his computer.

“It’s okay, Markus”, Connor continued. “I’ve been free from Chloe for _years_. It was only a matter of time until she would find me.”

The way Connor spoke; soft but determined - regretfully accepting his fate - made Markus’ heart do _more_ than a twist this time. He had saved up for his computer for so long, and Chloe was right; he _lived_ online. It would be a huge step to leave his lifestyle behind and walk into reality off-screen.

“I-” he drew a breath and closed his eyes.

Connor may not have had a human body, but he _was_ human. It didn’t matter that his brain was programmed rather than having been biologically birthed. He opened his eyes, determined.

“I’ll save you, Connor.”

It took no longer than five minutes to download Connor’s consciousness to the USB, and Markus felt a sting of longing as the screen returned to its regular black. He looked at it in contemplation. Then, before he could talk himself out of it, he ripped out the harddrive from the computer’s case and put it in his pocket. He took a deep breath. From the hallway outside, he could hear people approaching fast.

He picked up the heavy computer.

Then he smashed it on the floor.

* * *

  
  


“I can’t _believe_ your celebrity crush is some old guy who’s got as many wrinkles as he’s years old!” Markus was horrified.

“James Rainwater was a genius”, Connor argued. “And I don’t care for age.”

Markus laughed heartily. “Okay, fine. But if you can’t choose _him_ , then who?”

“Willard S. Boyle”, Connor answered without missing a beat.

“Do I even _want_ to image search him?”

“Perhaps not.”

Markus groaned. How had he ended up dating a person with access to endless information online, yet chose to insist that old nobel prize winners were sexier than literally _anyone else_?

“Do you wish I had as many wrinkles as them?” Markus teased. He sat in the passenger seat of his car with feet strewn on the instrument panel. The car’s radio was connected to a small transmitter with a USB outlet, and Connor’s calming voice resonated through the stereo’s bass as he spoke.

“You will have wrinkles some day, and I will certainly not complain about them.”

Markus laughed. When CyberLife’s employees had emerged in his old one-room apartment, he had simply walked out and never returned. It had been hard at first, to live without the constant distractions of his computer, but he had never felt such liberating freedom as he did in this inconspicuous car with his invisible boyfriend - who just happened to be a conscious virus.

Both were safe, and all was well.


End file.
